The recently published patch notes for the upcoming Harbingers Collection Event in the hit battle royale Apex Legends have revealed that the formidable Nemesis Burst Assault Rifle is set to receive a significant nerf.
Of the many diverse and distinct weapons available across seven categories in Apex Legends, the rapid-fire Nemesis Burst AR has been viewed as extremely powerful and unbalanced by portions of the player base since it first debuted back in Season 16.
Apex Legends Patch Notes For Harbingers Update
| PATCH NOTES |
|---|
| BALANCE UPDATES |
| – Weapon Crafting rotation |
| – 30-30 Repeater enters the crafter |
| – RE-45 with Hammerpoint Rounds enters the crafter |
| – Mozambique returns to floor loot |
| – Nemesis returns to floor loot |
| – Lowered autoplayer difficulty in orientation matches |
| – Redistributed the pockets of high tier armor within POI’s (e.g., the center of Countdown on World’s Edge) into the global loot pool |
| WEAPONS |
| – Nemesis Burst AR |
| – Damage reduced to 16 (was 17) |
| – ADS recoil increased |
| LEGENDS |
| – Fuse |
| – Knuckle Cluster |
| – Tactical deployment speed increased |
| – Horizon |
| – Gravity Lift |
| – Weapon accuracy decreased while in Lift (more spread) |
| – Vertical Lift speed reduced by 20% |
| – Hover time at top of Lift reduced to 0.5s (was 2.0s) |
| – Rampart |
| – Amped Cover |
| – Placement time reduced to 2s (was 3s) |
| – Rampart now remains in placement mode after deploying a wall |
| – Revenant |
| – Forged Shadows |
| – Reduce time extension from knocks to 5s (was 10s) |
| – Extra damage to the shroud will bleedthrough to Revenant if it breaks |
| – Shadow Pounce |
| – Slightly increased pounce angle compensation when looking at the ground |
| MAPS |
| – World’s Edge After Dark added to LTM |
| RANKED |
| – Recent Hotfix: September 6, 2023 |
| – Guaranteed (%, per kill) Elimination Bonus has been raised across all skill levels |
| – Point disparity between teammates of vastly different skill has been reduced |
| BUG FIXES |
| – Digi-Threat now correctly highlights enemies through close proximity multi-layered FX |
| – Gold magazine and gold bolt now work after being killed by a dummy |
| – Level 1 accounts no longer appear as Champions in pubs |
| Audio |
| – Certain weapon sounds (such as Rampart’s mounted turret motor) now stop upon match end |
| – Finishers should no longer have doubled-up or missing audio |
| – Weapon draw audio now plays correctly when swapping legends in the firing range |
| Olympus |
| – New Revenant Heirloom no longer changes to original Dead Man’s Curve coloring after leaving the Fight Night ring on Olympus |
| – Resolved endless skydiving after flying off map with a Trident |
| PC DX12 |
| – Resolved incorrect cursor location when using the controller in certain resolutions |
| – Restored game window positioning when video settings are reset |
| LEGENDS |
| – Ash’s Floating Point emote no longer has incorrect sound |
| – Bloodhound’s Piercing Plasma no longer occasionally turns enemies invisible |
| – Crypto will now get kicked out of his drone when silenced |
| – Mirage restored heirloom allowing players to switch weapons without breaking cloak after a revive |
| – Seer’s Focus of Attention no longer interrupts other highlight items and abilities |
| – Vantage’s Spotter’s Lens restored in Firing Range |
| – Valkyrie’s Bladed Descent no longer stutters visually |
| – Wraith no longer gets stuck when meleed while using Into the Light finisher |
| – Revenant |
| – Forged Shadows |
| – Damage to the shroud now contributes to damage stats and evo points |
| – Friendly arc stars and knuckle clusters no longer stick to the shroud |
| – Mad Maggie’s Warlord’s Ire now highlights Revenant when you hit his shroud |
| – Vantage’s Sniper’s Mark now applies when you hit his shroud |
| – Stun effects now apply when his ultimate is active |
| – No longer gets stuck in Shadow Pounce when activating the ability before landing from the dropship |
| – Resolved animation canceling when using Shadow Pounce that allowed you to draw weapons early |
| – Restored highlight from Assassin’s Instinct showing up in cases where enemies are visible but partially obstructed |
| – Stopped Shadow Pounce automatically deploying after climbing a ledge |
| QUALITY OF LIFE |
| – Bloodhound can see Revenant’s Forged Shadows activation point |
| – Firing Range Supply Boxes now sort weapons by type for easy access |
| – Loba’s Black Market now sorts weapons by type for easy access |
| – Improvements to how our audio engine dispatches and prioritizes audio voices |
| – More accurate shadow rendering for legends and weapons in game menus |
| – PC DX12: implemented new RHI (Rendering Hardware Interface) rendering backend |
Watch The New Harbingers Event Trailer Below
Introduced midway through last year during Season 16, the energy ammo-using Nemesis Burst AR quickly became a popular choice in fights thanks to its hard-hitting 4-round burst potential. When charged up after continuous shooting for a few seconds, its already impressive base damage per second gets even higher.
Although now only obtainable through the Replicator crafting system in the current Season 18, it’s remained the dominant selection for those willing to put in the time and materials to craft it. However, the Nemesis could be set to lose its reputation as an overpowered gun if the latest update info from the developers is any indication.
On 14th of September, Apex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment revealed the patch notes for the upcoming Harbingers Collection Event, which included some major changes to weapon balancing. Most significantly, the notes indicate the Nemesis Burst AR will be nerfed by reducing the damage per bullet from 17 down to 16.
The recoil when aiming down sights will also be increased overall, compounding existing handling issues some players already experienced. These nerfs are scheduled to go live when the event kicks off on the 19th of September according to Respawn.
It will be interesting to monitor how significantly this impacts the wider weapon meta and choices for the remainder of Apex Legends Season 18. As a 4-round burst weapon, the reduction of 1 damage per bullet equates to 4 less damage per complete burst compared to before. And considering the Nemesis already had significant recoil that was difficult to control, the gun could become even harder to master following the increased recoil.
Other Weapon and Legend Changes Incoming
However, one potential positive is that this upcoming patch will also return the Nemesis to regular floor loot after being restricted to only the Replicator previously. This change could open up access to more players trying the weapon despite its reduced damage numbers.
The Nemesis adjustments aren’t the only weapon-related changes arriving with the Harbingers update. The Mozambique shotgun will also return to floor loot, while the 30-30 Repeater rifle and RE-45 pistol with Hammerpoint Rounds will rotate into the crafting pool. Several playable characters are receiving kit tweaks as well, like impactful nerfs to recently strong choices Horizon and Revenant.
Hopefully these myriad tweaks create a more balanced and enjoyable experience moving forward. Aside from the balance changes, the Harbingers update brings a new limited-time mode called Living Shells to World’s Edge After Dark, adding special ordnance, plus a stylish new Razor’s Edge heirloom for the character Fuse. Even with Season 19 still far away, there’s plenty for fans to dig into and enjoy in coming weeks.
Can the Nemesis keep its fearsome reputation following reductions to damage and increased recoil? Drop back onto the battlegrounds next Tuesday to feel out the shifts to the meta. For battle royale enthusiasts, the game’s continuous evolution keeps the action fresh with every new Collection.
Apex Legends is out now for Windows PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source – EA
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Stephen is the proud owner of a popular gaming news website GLN, where he provides the latest updates on everything gaming-related. With a passion for video games that dates back to his childhood, Stephen is dedicated to sharing his knowledge and expertise with fellow gamers around the world.